September 13, 2012

Hillsnbourgh The Truth
Yesterday David Cameron apologised and absolved Liverpool FC fans of any blame regarding the the hillsboro Disaster, and the media seem happy to perpetuate this new myth just like some elements of the press were happy to jump on the bandwagon and demonise Liverpool fans twenty odd years ago. Well Dave is a politician and wants peoples vote and has shown he is willing to tell lies to achieve it, I’m not a politician and i don’t want your votes so I’m afraid you will have to settle for the truth.
I had this same debate over a decade ago while listening to a group of Liverpool fans working in the area having a go at United fans, their argument went something like this “everyone sympathises with United over Munich, everyone sympathises with Rangers over Ibrox, everyone sympathises with Bradford over the fire etc, but when its Liverpool no one cares, they’re just scum no ones going to miss them”. I told them they were mistaken people did sympathies with what had happened at Hillsboro but that sympathy was tempered by the fact that Liverpool fans had blamed everyone, the Police, the FA, the Hillsboro organisers, the TV companies, the lads doing road works on the motorway that day, i have even heard it called an Act of God, everyone was to blame, but not Liverpool fans who were always considered above blame.
The Police have to carry a lot of the blame, both for the total incompetence at policing the event, but even more so for the shameful way they acted subsequently and have continued to behave for twenty three years, the Hillsboro organisers and FA need to take their fare share of the blame also for allowing a match to be held there in the first place, there had been plenty of warnings and sadly it was only a matter of time before someone was killed.
To be fair to the Police, no one has ever asked the question what if they had kept the gates closed and people had been crushed to death outside the ground, the fact is Liverpool fans were pleading with Police to open the gates or people were going to die, and the Police gave in to pressure from fans and opened the gates, it wasn’t an unusual occurrence I’ve witnessed it myself fans pushing forward trying to get the Police to give way and open the gates and let everyone in with tickets and without.
I still sympathise with Liverpool fans and the families of those who lost loved ones, but I’m sorry, to say Liverpool fans played no part in what happened is a lie and until they accept that fans played some part in what happened i don’t think people will empathise with the Liverpool fans, they need to stop acting like innocent victims of the Police, that isn’t what happened, the Police were guilty of terrible mistakes, but they were mistakes not a deliberate act to kill Liverpool fans, and the Liverpool fans also need to accept that yes, rival fans do sing offensive and hurtful songs, and yes they should be found and at the very least banned from football matches, but its a small minority of fans and Liverpool are not immune, they have a small number of fans who do the same to others and pretending it doesn’t happen with Liverpool fans just Isn’t true, I’ve spoken to Liverpool fans who have admitted doing it.
Hillsboro happened as a result of a number of factors no single individual or organisation were to blame, but the fact is they weren’t crushed by the Police they were crushed by other Liverpool fans, it wasn’t a deliberate act but those fans have to accept some of the blame, and perhaps if they did accept what happened they could come to terms with what happened in a way being absolved of guilt by David Cameron isn’t going to achieve.